Public Displays of Affection
by OverlyDramatic
Summary: Derek doesn't like openly displaying his feelings. And everyone knows it.


This is in resonse to the new LWD episode and my own need to write a Christmas story that isn't completely conventional (it may be a little predictable, but writing an original Christmas story is extremely difficult). I really hated how they led up to Kendra kissing Derek in public, when he obviously did not want to be kissed, then had no result. It annoyed me. So here's my resolution, Christmas style. Gah, I can't believe I'm writing this.

**Disclaimer: Do you think I'm Santa Claus, too?**

It was Christmas Eve, and the Venturi-MacDonald abode had been decked out in a medley of holiday decorations. The boys complained for days when Nora announced the family would decorate together and left most of the work to the girls, grudgingly hanging garlands and ornaments in difficult places while the females made the house look decent. Casey seemed particularly pleased with the task, taking great pleasure in ordering the unwilling Derek to hang holly and carry boxes. The overall effect brightened the house, but the females admired the sight a good deal more than the males, who were just glad to have finished. Obviously, the Venturi's never decorated that extensively in previous years. Nevertheless, the shining gold and happy red and green lent a certain atmosphere to the room as they held a mock celebration on Christmas Eve. A few of Lizzie and Edwin's friends had come, but quickly grew bored, and Emily had gone home around ten. Only Kendra stayed, cooing over decorations and generally hanging happily about her boyfriend's person.

The family sat around the living room with cookies and eggnog, allowing one night of a relatively peaceful family event, though somewhat grudgingly. Lizzie and Edwin were fighting over the last of the cookies, not even noticing Marti sneak up to grab it before skipping off. Casey sat on the couch with a good book, glancing up every so often to watch George cuddle with her mother or Derek talk to Kendra. Kendra had pulled Derek into the other room for another glass of eggnog, and returned smiling mischeviously. She set her glass on the table, turning back to her boyfriend and sliding her palms up his chest.

"Oh, Der," Kendra cooed, looking at the doorframe above their heads. He looked up, knowing what to expect, then looked out at his family, who had noticed something afoot and turned to watch the pair with varying levels of amusement.

"You're under the mistletoe!" Marti announced gleefully, stopping her trajectory around the room to watch her brother and his girlfriend expectantly.

Edwin hooted approvingly and Nora said, smiling slightly, "Go ahead and kiss her, Derek." Casey glanced up, the sole one to notice the reluctance in Derek's eyes.

"Kendra, I don't think-" he was cut off by her lips, kissing him soundly. He remained unresponsive, and she deepened the kiss until he finally gave the barest response and she let go. She smiled sweetly at him, but he didn't return the expression. "Kendra, can I talk to you?"

"Sure, Der Bear," she giggled, allowing him to drag her back into the kitchen, obviously missing his tone of voice.

"Kendra," he drew out, leaning against the counter and watching her with unwanted seriousness. This time she heard the undertone in his voice and stopped smiling, taking his hands consolingly and looking up at his face.

"What's wrong?" she implored.

"That," he told her, nodding towards the doorway where the mistletoe still hung.

"Come on, Derek," Kendra said, smiling and tugging at his hands playfully. "That was just a little fun."

"That was PDA," he said flatly. "We talked about this last time, Kendra."

She watched him, semi-serious, as she assured, "I was just showing the Christmas spirit."

"You were disrespecting me. You know how much I hate showing affection in public."

"Don't you think you're taking this a little too seriously?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

"It's not the kiss, Kendra. It's . . ." he trailed off, unwilling to complete the sentence.

"Wait," she began, watching him with a mixture of worry and offense. "You can't possibly . . .?" She didn't need to compete the sentence for him to nod in agreement.

"But I thought . . ." she began, "and the mistletoe . . ." she reached up to straighten his collar, fighting the tears from her eyes. "Derek, this is silly," she assured, hoping to change his mind. When he remained guiltily unmoved, the drops in her eyes leaked out. "But Derek," she begged, ignoring him cringe at her tears. "Can't we talk about it?"

"We have talked about it, Kendra," he reminded, as resolutely as possible in the presence of a crying girl.

She watched him imploringly for a few more seconds before removing her hands from his neck. "Fine," she said petulantly through her tears. Turning, she grabbed her coat from across the back of a chair, not bothering the slip it on before slamming the back door behind her. Derek sighed, turning and heading back into the front room.

"Where's Kendra?" Casey asked in confusion as he emerged from the kitchen.

"She went home," he said flippantly. "We broke up," he added, face a mixture of annoyance, regret and his usual cocky demeanor.

Casey almost asked, 'Why?' but the glare Derek gave her stopped the question. Glancing at the small plant hanging above the door, she figured she already knew, anyway.

Nora and George glanced up, surprised; Kendra had lasted longer than any of the other girls Derek had dated, the only girl he had ever gotten back together with after a breakup. Nora began to say something comforting, but one look at Derek's demeanor stopped her as well. With an annoyed glare at his family, he sat on the floor beside Marti, joining the made-up game she had begun. Everyone exchanged glances and returned to their previous activites.

The clock read 2:01. George and Nora had made their obligatory trip to sneak presence under the tree, and Derek had slipped down to the kitchen for a plate of late night cookies. He glanced up, bordom overriding his surprise as he heard footsteps descend the stairs, a figure appearing in the doorway moments later.

"Couldn't sleep?" he asked amusedly, taking in Casey's rumpled hair and twisted tank top as she stopped unexpectedly and noticed her stepbrother.

"What are you doing up?" she asked, ignoring his question. He gestured obviously at the plate of cookies before returning to his snack.

"Oh," she said sheepishly, wondering how she missed the glass of milk and nearly empty plate. Without asking, Casey walked over and snatched a cookie, studying the Santa patterned icing before taking a bite. Noting Derek's curious, mildly annoyed stare, she remembered his earlier question. "My Dad used to let me sneak down and eat Santa's cookies with him, after I found out Santa wasn't real," she explained, pulling up a stool. "I got used to staying awake Christmas Eve."

He gave a half-hearted chuckle. "I always had to sneak down and eat some when Dad wasn't looking," he admitted, taking another bite. She smiled slightly, reaching for another cookie. They sat in silence for another few minutes, until Derek dusted the last cookie crumbs from his fingers and stood, leaving the empty plate on the table.

"Aren't you going to pick that up?" she asked, annoyed.

Turning, he gave her a knowing grin and a raised brow before exiting the room.

"Derek," Casey called, making him turn in exasperation. "It's my fault you and Kendra broke up," she said guiltily, catching him off guard. "I told her you liked PDA, that you were just testing her."

He didn't look surprised by the news. "You're taking too much credit," he told her cockily, rolling his eyes. "I talked to Kendra after the party. She said she understood and wouldn't do it again. But she did."

He turned to leave again, but the needling feeling wouldn't leave her stomach. She stood, hurrying over to him and catching his arm before he could make it any farther. "I'm sorry," she said, sounding more guilty and annoyed than apologetic.

He shrugged carelessly. "It was bound to happen."

She nodded, but neither moved. A lurking feeling had settled around Casey, as if something was about to happen. She leaned her head back, staring momentarily in surprise before registering the small plant above their heads. He saw her odd look and glanced up himself. "We don't have to . . ." she began, then trailed off, looking to Derek for conformtion.

"There's no one around," he told her, and for a moment she thought he said it in agreement. That notion was quickly shattered when he swooped his head down and kissed her. She sank against the wall in surprise before returning the kiss, somehow managing to open her lips slightly in the brief amount of time it lasted. They watched each other in shocked contemplation for a few seconds before that telltale smirk settled over Derek's lips. "Hmm," he murmered, cocking his head and shrugging. Before Casey could fully register it, he had strode across the front room and climbed the stairs. Casey stared at the empty space he had recently vacated, confused. Had she actually enjoyed that? Had he? He seemed to like being caught under the mistletoe the second time much more than the first, she mused with a growing smile. Her mind swirrled, wondering about her feelings and his, how she would act tomorrow and whether he would ignore the occurance; she contemplated things that had never before crossed her mind, especially in relation to her annoying, cocky stepbrother. But one thought drifted into the forefront of her mind as she smiled in satisfaction and headed up the stairs. _Maybe there's something to say about hating PDA after all_.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Yes, I am aware that was totally cheesy. I wonder what it is about the holidays that turns people's brains into romantic mush. It's not just Christmas, either, but Easter and Valentine's Day and Thanksgiving; even things like Halloween and St. Patrick's day on occasion. Ah well. Let me know if you liked it anyway. Goodness knows there's already too many mistletoe fics out there. I've never really done a breakup scene before, but Derek always seems gentler around his girls, so hopefully that wasn't too off. And I hope the cause was believable. Well, now I'm off to shoot myself for writing such a conformist piece of crap. Did you know Christmas has the highest suicide rate, after Valentine's Day? No joke.


End file.
